


Helped

by Pointeofdance



Series: Possessed Trilogy [2]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012), Supernatural
Genre: Demonic Possession, Identity Reveal, Secret Identity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-29
Updated: 2016-11-29
Packaged: 2018-09-03 00:43:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8689957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pointeofdance/pseuds/Pointeofdance
Summary: A surprise visit to see Laurel was the best thing that could've come out of any hunt, Sam believed. Laurel was just happy to see her old friend that she could relate to. Vampires couldn't even spoil it. Maybe... Based on Katie Cassidy and the fact that she plays both Laurel in Arrow and Ruby in Supernatural. Sequel to Possessed.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all! First off, I need to apologize. This story had been posted on ff.net for MONTHS and I completely forgot to post it here (thank you to artemis_vixen for reminding me). Oh well, here at last! For new people, this is a sequel to a previous story I wrote called Possessed and really won't make sense unless you've read it. To everybody who supported me with that story, thank you! This story takes place in the second halves of season 3 for Arrow and season 10 for Supernatural but won't be involved in any of the major plotlines from either series.
> 
> This story was beta'd by KatsatheGraceling. She's an awesome writer and you should really go check her out.

Sam walked into the club, wrinkling his nose. He had never been much for the nightclub scene, preferring the quieter bars. 

  
"Don't know why you're so anxious to meet this chick, Sammy, but I'm digging this place," his brother said, giving the club an appreciative glance. "I'm going to the bar."  


Sam gave a small nod and continued looking around the place. He wasn't sure why  _ she _ would be here since she had never seemed the type, but who knew? The place was crowded and he had to squeeze past people to get out of the crowd. From the side, his gaze swept across the room.  _ There _ . She looked beautiful, even in just a pair of slacks and a simple blouse. He hadn't seen her in years, so it was pretty clear why she had been so difficult to spot. She had told him that her hair had been brown and curly, prior to her possession. In fact, he snorted to himself, she had freaked when she saw her hair.    


He walked over to her slowly, not sure how his surprise visit would be received. They had talked a couple times since the call about her sister still being alive, and who now seemed to be a huge part of her life, but those calls had stopped many months ago now.  
She was talking to somebody. A cute girl who barely looked old enough to be in the club, let alone behind the counter. He couldn't hear what they were saying above the noise, but when they both started laughing, the girl behind the counter turning her face away and spotted him. She nudged the girl who was still laughing and she turned to face him. A wide smile broke across her face. She walked over quickly and surprised him with a tight hug.  


"My God, Sam. It's been a long time."   


"Hey, Laurel," he grinned down at her.   


"Come on," she said, breaking out of the hug and pulling him upstairs to an empty table away from the crowds. "So what brings you to Starling?"   


"Do I need an excuse?" Sam asked.   


"I'm thinking if it was a just-for-pleasure visit, it would've come a lot sooner," Laurel observed.   


Sam shrugged uncomfortably. "Okay, so we have a job in the city and I figured I'd come see you."   


"Dean's here with you?"    


"At the bar," Sam replied, nodding his head in the general direction.    


"Do I get to meet him?" Laurel asked with a smirk.   


"Only if I get to meet that sister of yours you were gushing about during our last conversation," Sam countered.   


He knew immediately he had said something wrong. Laurel's open face closed off and she looked down at her hands.   


"Sara's dead."   


It took him a minute to process. "Wait,  _ dead _ dead?"   


Laurel laughed harshly. "If a couple of arrows to the chest and a fall off a roof doesn't kill her, she's immortal."   


"Arrows?" Sam questioned at the odd weapon.   


"Just... Don't ask," Laurel sighed, meeting his eye. "If you have been following the local news, you'd realize we get some odd people with odd hobbies around here."   


"You've got a couple of vigilantes, don't you?" Sam asked in realization.   


Laurel nodded. "They do a bunch of good. They have put so many people in jail that I bet over half the cells are filled with people the Arrow and his associates put in there. But sometimes people get caught in the crossfire."   


"So this is the chick you wanted to meet, Sammy?" a gruff voice asked behind him.    


He rolled his eyes and looked up at his brother. "Yes, Dean. This is Laurel."   


"You look familiar," Dean commented, pulling a chair up to their table.   


"Does blond hair, black eyes, and a demon bitch named Ruby ring a bell?" Laurel asked sarcastically.   


Dean's eyes widened. " _ You're _ Ruby's old meatsuit?"   


"Dean!" Sam exclaimed. "Be nice."   


"Sorry, princess," Dean grumbled as Laurel glared at him.   


Laurel glared at him. "It was kind of the worst time of my life so a little tact would’ve been nice. And  _ don’t _ call me princess. Ever.”   


"I said I'm sorry," Dean said, putting his hands in the air.   


"So Laurel was just telling me about a couple of vigilantes they have in the area," Sam interrupted loudly, trying to avoid an argument.   


"Vigilantes, huh?" Dean asked, taking a drink from the beer bottle in his hand. "Think they may be trouble for us?"   


"Depends. What are you planning on doing?" Laurel shrugged. "If they suspect you of hurting people, they'll come after you or try to stop you."   


"Damn, a vamp nest isn't going to be too subtle in the ‘ _ not hurting people _ ’ category," Dean cursed. "They're the most human-looking things of the bunch, except maybe werewolves."   


Laurel's eyes widened. "A vampire nest? Here in Starling?"   


"Yeah, most big cities have them," Sam admitted, hating that they were bringing her into this. "But this one has begun to attract attention."   


"I haven't heard anything, and my dad is a captain on the police force," Laurel said, confused.   


"See, here's the weird thing," Dean said, lowering his voice. "Most vamps in these sort of cities clean up after themselves. They don't want to attract any attention of hunters. Here, I figure that it's the same system, but somebody's gotten sloppy. They've been leaving bodies out just long enough for the locals to start getting scared, but the authorities haven't caught wind."   


"Where are they based out of?" Laurel asked. She held up her hand and Dean closed his mouth. "Wait, don't tell me. The only place can be the Glades."   


Sam chuckled, not too surprised that she had guessed. "Seems like the roughest place in town and all of the large warehouses are perfect for them."   


"I'm surprised that the vigilantes haven't suspected anything," Laurel muttered to herself. "They're in the Glades all the time."   


Dean eyed her, looking at her like she could be useful for the first time. "How'd you know something like that?"   


Laurel rolled her eyes. "I'm the assistant DA. It's my job to know what's happening in the city."   


Sam shot her a look. Of course he believed her, he knew what her job was, but there was something in her voice. A sort of... hurt or worry. She noticed his glance and looked down at her hands. He grimaced. That was one of the clearest guilty signs she could've given. But why would she feel guilty about her job?   


Dean looked at Laurel appraisingly. "Ms. Laurel, I believe that you could make our job a lot simpler.   


 

* * *

 

 

"Welcome to my place," Laurel said, opening the door to her apartment. "You're welcome to stay here as long as you need."   


"It's really nice," Sam complimented.   


"Thanks," she grinned, setting down her coat. "The guest bedroom is in the back. If you need anything, let me know."   


Dean nodded and walked away, but Sam stayed with her. She turned to begin preparing dinner.   


"Laurel, are you doing okay?" he asked quietly.   


She didn't stop what she was doing. "Sam, if it were anybody except you, I'd say perfect, but I think that you'd see right through it."   


Sam didn't say anything and she didn't turn around. She heard the shower start in the back, providing a bit of noise in the silence.   


"Sara... She didn't deserve to die," she began. "She might've made some mistakes, and, granted, I hated her for quite a few of them, but she always did what was best in the end. She went through so much on the island, and everything afterwards. I could never live up to who she was. I'm proud to call her my sister."   


She turned to face Sam who was watching her quietly. "She would do anything to help people. She risked- would risk her life if that's what was needed of her. She fought for so many, but in the end, she came up to a fight she couldn't win. And I don't- I don't even know who killed her."  
Tears had begun to run down her face during her monologue. Sam got up quietly and drew her into his arms. He rubbed her back and let her cry.  


"I know, I know," he murmured. "I was... I can't even tell you how lucky I was to get my brother back. But you know what? However proud you were of Sara, I bet she was just as proud of you."   


The water on the stove began to boil so she slowly pulled out of his arms, drying her eyes with her sleeve. Mutely, she dumped the pasta into the pot and turned the temperature down slightly.   


"Laurel?" Sam asked quietly. "Did I say something wrong?"   


"No," she replied with a dry chuckle. "You're the first person to say something right."   


 

* * *

  
Laurel made her way into the base. She sighed in relief when she only saw the two people she wanted to talk to.  


"Hi, Laurel," Roy greeted from where he was leaning against Felicity's desk.   


"Hi," Felicity echoed.   


"Can I ask you guys a favor?" she asked.   


"What can we do for you?" Felicity said.   


Laurel took a deep breath. They would not be happy about the next part. "Can you not tell Oliver about this? I need a favor and you two are the only people who can help me. It's nothing bad, I promise."   


"Alright," Roy agreed slowly, crossing his arms. "What is it?"   


"I was wondering if you've heard of any odd bodies found in the Glades. Odd as in drained of blood. But then they disappear before the police can get there."   


Felicity tilted her head. "We must have  _ very _ different definitions of the word 'bad'. Generally, bodies equal bad. Especially weird ones."   


"Please. It's just something I'm looking into," Laurel begged. "If it turns into something, I'll tell Ollie."   


Felicity shrugged and turned to her computer. "I'll check the limited security footage the Glades offer."   


"I haven't heard anything, but I can ask around," Roy agreed. "I'll stay quiet for now, but if we find that there is somebody murdering people in the Glades, I  _ will _ tell Oliver."   


"Fine, fine," Laurel agreed, waving her hand. "Just give me the chance to explain things if they get to that point."   


Felicity didn't look up from the computer screen. "I've found something! I think..."   


Laurel leaned over the computer genius' shoulder. The video was of poor quality, but the sight of a body was perfectly clear. All of a sudden, a figure ran out and knelt next to the body.   


"Sin?" Roy murmured. "What are you doing?"   


The person looked up and straight at the cam before standing up quickly and running away. Less than a minute later, there was a blur across the screen and the body was gone.   


"What the hell?" Felicity asked as her fingers flew across the keyboard. A slower version of the footage started playing across the screen, but it did little good. A pale blur raced across the screen once again and the body was gone.   


"What is this?" Roy asked, looking at Laurel. "How did you know about this?"   


"A friend alerted me," Laurel shrugged. "I'm just looking into it for now. But my friend doesn't want to be brought into anything so that's why I don't want to tell Ollie."   


"I'll talk to Sin, the girl on the video," Roy volunteered. "I want to know what she's up to and how she's connected."   


"Thanks," Laurel said, gracing him with a small smile. "And you won't tell Oliver, right?"   


"For now. But if this is as bad as that video looked, I will tell," Felicity promised. Laurel grimaced. "I'm sorry, but if people are going to be in trouble, Oliver deserves to know."   


Laurel gave a tight smile, but nodded her head. "I can't ask for any more."  
  


* * *

  
Roy leaned against a column in the hideout that he knew that Sin liked to be at. Although he wasn't sure if she had been there since Sara died, he figured it was worth the wait. He shifted his grip on his bow. He had come here during his normal patrol, Oliver currently being on the other side of town. If Oliver needed him, he was in reach, but other than that, he would be left alone.  


"Haven't seen you here in awhile, Abercrombie," a dry voice sounded behind him.   


He turned with a smile, pushing his hood down. "Been busy."   


Sin walked past him and looked out the window. "I bet. Are you any closer?"   


He didn't need to ask what she was talking about. He walked up beside her and looked out into the Glades. "We're trying our best, but no luck so far."   


"Damn," Sin said simply. "I was hoping a visit would mean some good news."   


Roy grimaced. "Actually, it's a bit more bad."   


"Uh oh," Sin said sarcastically, turning to face him. "I didn't realize there was worse news than your best friend being killed."   


He flinched slightly at her tone. "Um, actually, it is about people getting killed and I think you can help."   


Sin stiffened. "How'd you find out?"   


"Security cam."   


"Shoulda figured," Sin shrugged. "Can't keep much hidden from the Arrows."   


"Why would you want to?" Roy asked.   


Sin sighed. "Because this isn't something you know how to handle. Can you just trust me to take care of it?"   


"Maybe if I knew what it was. Besides, it was Laurel who brought it to our attention."   


"Really?" Sin questioned, looking interested. "Does she know what's happening?"   


He shrugged. "She asked us if we knew of any strange deaths in the Glades, specifically any bodies drained of blood, however odd that sounds. Felicity found the security footage of you near one of the bodies so I came to talk to you."   


Sin turned and walked away, deep in thought, muttering to herself. "So Laurel knows, but doesn't know the situation."   


"What do you mean?"   


"There are things you don't know," she began. "I need to talk to Laurel. Where can I find her?"   


"At her apartment, I guess," Roy shrugged and rattled off the address.   


"Thanks, man," Sin said, gracing him with a rare smile. "I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but if I talk to Laurel, there's a good possibility this whole thing will be over before you need to get involved."   


With that, she walked out of the room, leaving Roy staring after her, confused as hell.   
  


* * *

  
Laurel snickered at Sam's reddening face as Dean continued telling the story, trying his hardest not to laugh.  


"And I turn back to him and he's standing there, looking like a lost puppy! I ask him what wrong, and he just looks at me and, in the most pathetic voice, says 'I lost my shoe'!"   


Laurel cracked up, gasping for breath. She lifted her head up to Sam, who was sitting next to her on the couch, an arm around her shoulders. Looking at her face full of mirth, he couldn't help a small chuckle.   


The doorbell rang and Laurel quit laughing immediately.   


"Crap, I'll get it. Just stay quiet and hopefully nobody will ask too many questions."   


She got up and went to the door, looking through the peephole. Her brow furrowed as she spotted a familiar, but unknown, face looking back defiantly. She cautiously opened the door.   


"Can I help you?"   


"Are you Laurel Lance?" the girl asked.    


"And if I am?" Laurel challenged. Something about this girl screamed dangerous. Not in Oliver or Dean's "don't mess with me" way, rather an "I can take of myself" way. It may have been the way she dressed or her sarcastic attitude that seemed to ooze from her posture, Laurel wasn't sure.   


"I came home to a certain person asking questions about something you had seen on a security cam feed. You're lucky I didn't tell him everything. I figured it would make your mission whole lot harder."   


"You're the Sin girl Roy was going to talk to?" Laurel asked, now realizing why the girl looked familiar.   


"The one and only," Sin smirked. "Now can you tell me what you know about... other stuff? I know for a fact that your arrow shooting friends didn't tell you."   


"Only if you tell me how you're involved," Laurel countered. "Roy may know you, but that doesn't earn my trust."   


"How about your sister's friendship?"   


At Laurel's surprised face, Sin smirked and continued.    


"Yeah, I knew your sister. She saved me from something pretty awful and told me everything. I've been hunting with her a bit. But I also know that you didn't learn in the same place she did. You couldn't have. So now it's your turn."   


"Come in," Laurel decided, stepping aside. She figured that if this girl knew Sara, she could give her the benefit of the doubt. Besides, if something went wrong, she had Sam and Dean here who she knew were always armed.   


Sin gave her an odd look and Laurel shrugged. "If you want to know what I know, I'm not going to keep talking in the hall."   


Reluctantly, the girl entered her apartment. Turning the corner, she spotted Sam and Dean. She froze.    


"You didn't say that you had company."   


"Well Laurel wouldn't know how to look for a vamp nest. Can you really see her as a true hunter?" Dean snorted.   


Laurel glared at him. "Just because I've never been on a hunt before doesn't mean I can't—!"   


"But that's okay!" Sam interrupted before Dean and Laurel could begin arguing... again. Which was something they had been doing constantly in between the stories.   


Laurel gave Sam a small smile before turning back to Sin. "Sin, this is Sam and the rude one is Dean."   


Sin raised an impressed eyebrow. "As in Sam and Dean Winchester?"   


Laurel moaned. "Oh God, please tell me you're not as big of a fangirl as my sister!"   


"Wait, fangirl?" Dean asked, holding a hand out.   


Sin rolled her eyes. "Yeah, Sara might've been your biggest fan. She thought that you guys were some of the bravest in the world."   


"She asked to meet you guys once," Laurel said quietly. "I was going to give you a call, Sam, but then things got so crazy and then, next thing I knew, she's dead."   


Sam pulled her into his arms and held her tightly.    


"So, this vamp nest," Dean said, clearing his throat. "What do you know about it?"   


"Me and Sara had been following this nest for quite a while," Sin began, sitting in a chair. "They weren't doing much, feeding from blood bags or whatever, so we just left them. But a few months ago, bodies began appearing in the streets. Sara had gone back to Nanda Parbat so I began to look into it on my own."   


"That was dangerous," Dean commented.    


Sin glared at him. "Give me more credit than that. I know what I can handle. I know that I can't go against a vampire nest on my own. But looking at bodies? That part I can do. Whoever is trailing behind the rogue and picking up the victims is avoiding any contact possible. So long as I leave within a few minutes, nobody bothers me."   


"So what did you find out?" Sam asked   


"Not as much as I'd like," Sin grimaced. "Honestly, it just looks like a normal vampire, but why hasn't the nest here taken care of it? Why are they just going around collecting bodies instead of stopping the guy?"   


"Is there any easy way to get in contact with the nest without them all wanting to kill us?" Dean asked. "If we can get along with some of the vamps, that could make our job a lot easier."   


"I've tried talking to the leader. I met him once, with Sara. She wanted to tell them that there were people in town that knew about them, but that we wouldn't bother them unless things got out of hand. The leader, Harrison, refused to talk about it when I went to go ask."   


"Well if that's not a sign of a guilty person, I don't know what is," Dean grumbled.   


"We should go talk to him," Sam agreed.    


"I can take you there," Sin offered and held up her wrist which had a bracelet with a white fang hanging off of it. "Both Sara and I were given these. If we meet anybody from the nest, they aren't suppose to hurt us and we will be given an audience if we wanted to talk."   


"That's a very generous promise," Laurel observed.   


Sin shrugged. "They really just want to be left alone. When they saw that we were willing to listen to their perspective instead of just killing them because they were vampires, they decided to go ahead and trust us. Something that has become mutually beneficial a couple times."   


"Mutually beneficial?" Dean asked, raising an eyebrow.   


"They are forced to keep a low profile, we keep hunters away from them. It works for everybody."   


"So why this rogue?" Sam muttered, standing up and beginning to pace.   


"I don't know, but we can figure it out," Sin said, standing up. "I've got to go. I'll meet you by the Verdant tomorrow night at midnight and we can go talk to Harrison."   


"Thanks for coming," Laurel said with a smile, leading the other girl towards the door. "We'll see you."   


Sin gave a little sarcastic salute and left.   


" _ We _ will not be seeing her," Dean stressed. "I think it's best if only me and Sam go."   


Laurel crossed her arms. "Oh? And why is that?"   


"It will be dangerous," Sam said. "Even though Sin said it would be safe, you can never be sure."   


"I want to know what's going on!" Laurel protested.   


"It's not worth your life!" Dean argued. "You can come with us to the club, but after that, you stay behind."   


"You do  _ not  _ get to decide what I do and do not do, Dean Winchester!"   


"Dean, maybe she can come with us," Sam said in a calming voice.   


Dean spun towards his brother. "Sam, you can't be serious!"   


"Hear me out. Laurel has been in tough situations before and knows how to not panic. I think that it would also be smart to bring somebody who actually knows how to use words and use them well. I may have been in pre-law, but she's a full blown lawyer and, from what I've seen in the news, a real tough act to outwit in the courtroom. We could use somebody like her to help pick apart what Harrison says."   


Laurel blushed a bit at his praise. Dean looked between her and Sam. "Fine. But if something goes wrong, don't say I didn't warn you."   


With that, he stomped back to the guest bedroom and closed the door behind him.   


"You didn't have to do that for me, Sam. If I'm going to distract you from your job..." Laurel started.   


Sam smiled and took her hand, leading her back to the couch. She sat close to him, leaning her head on his chest. "I wasn't just defending you, Laurel. I think that you could be very helpful."   


"Well you're the first," Laurel grimaced. "I just feel like everybody right now is babying me, like I'm going to shatter at any moment. They don't seem to understand that sitting around isn't going to help me. I have to be  _ doing _ something."   


"I know the feeling," Sam grimaced. "You obviously know that I've had some pretty tough times in my life, but there were some bad lows where Dean wouldn't even let me out of his sight, let alone go on hunts."   


He paused and looked down at her. "I'm sorry. I don't normally let people in so I guess when I do, things start to fall out."   


"Thank God!" she exclaimed, laughing. "I thought I was the only one! I was worried I was bothering you with my issues."   


"Never, Laurel," he assured her. He pulled back and looked into her eyes, holding her hands between them. "I've shared things with you that I wouldn't tell anybody else, not even Dean."   


"I- I feel like you're the only person I can talk to right now," Laurel admitted. "Nobody here in Starling understands what I'm going through."   


"I'll always be here," Sam promised. "I may not be here physically, but I'm always thinking about you and hoping that you're all right and having a good life. Sometimes the world takes and takes and never seems to give. I can understand that better than anyone. But you have to keep going. Sometimes you're alone, sometimes you have friends there to help you. I will  _ always _ be that friend, Laurel, if you need me to be."   


She didn't respond as she threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. He hugged her tightly, rubbing comforting circles on her back. When she tried to pull back, she found herself pulled right back in, his lips pressing against hers. She froze at first, but slowly sunk into it. His lips were warm and soft, moving easily against her own. She moved her hands up to tangle in his hair as she pulled him even closer.     


She wasn't sure how long the kiss had lasted, but it felt like eternity. When she finally pulled back, she looked into his eyes and smiled. "I've thought about that for a long time now."   


"I've always wondered what would've happened if I'd been brave enough to kiss you when we separated," Sam responded in kind. "I hope that the build up has been just as good for you as it was for me."   


"Of course," Laurel sighed happily and wormed her way deeper into his arms, letting herself settle there before falling asleep.    
  


* * *

  
"So I heard that you have some company in town," Oliver stated calmly.  


"Yes, I do," Laurel responded not sure what he was getting it.   


"Friends from college?"   


"Not exactly," she said with a small laugh. "Just a couple of brothers I met a few years ago. They're on a cross country road trip and I offered them a place to crash when they came here."   


"How well do you know them?"   


Her blood started to boil as she realized what he was getting to. "Sam and Dean won't hurt me! Besides, I can take care of myself."   


"I'm just looking out for you," Oliver protested.   


"Well stop," she glared and grabbed her black leather jacket. "You've made it clear that you already don't approve of anything I do. This is just another thing to add to that list."   


"Laurel," Oliver sighed and grabbed her arm.   


She spun at him, practically spitting. "Don't you  _ Laurel _ me! I know what I'm doing, Oliver.  You may not like me going out there every night, but I'm doing what I think is right. And if that includes having guys in my apartment who you don't know, so be it."   


She stormed out, grabbing her mask and staff as she went. She immediately climbed to the roof of the Verdant and started jumping from roof to roof. She loved the feeling of being strong and mysterious in the night. She knew that she could never live up to her sister's legacy, but being out in Starling, helping people, made her feel closer than ever. Oliver didn't understand her need to be out here. Nobody did. She wasn't even sure if she could tell Sam. Of course, if she did, that would mean explanations of everything, things she wasn't prepared to say. She trusted Sam with her life, but no matter how out of sorts she and Oliver were at the moment, she wouldn't betray his secret.   


She breathed in the cool night air, listening to the sounds of the city. She whipped her head around as she heard a scream. Nimbly, she leaped down the fire escape, nearly missing the last step and stumbling a bit on the landing. She had gotten better since Roy had started to teach her, but she was far from even his level, let alone Ollie’s or her sister’s.   


Her less than perfect landing had alerted the mugger attempting to take the purse off of a young women.   


"Which costumed freak are you?" the man spit, turning on her.   


"The last one you're ever going to see," she bit back   


With that, she jumped down, her pole extending as she did. The gun went off, but she was already past where the bullet would have hit. Her pole jabbed into the man's stomach while the other end was twisted to knock the gun out of his hand. The man recovered quicker than she expected. While she was still getting her feet under her from the landing, the man's fist jabbed out and caught her in the cheek, snapping her head back and causing her vision to blur briefly. She pushed back with all she had, bringing the top part of the pole back up to block his second punch while jabbing the other end towards his knees. The man went down and she whipped the pole around, hitting him on the side of the face, knocking him out.   


She was breathing hard as she turned to look at the poor woman cowering in a corner.   


"Go, call the police," she said simply, and the woman ran off.   


She smiled a bit to herself. Not all of her jobs went so smoothly. She felt her cheek and grimaced slightly as she felt the puffy skin. That would be a pain to cover up in the morning. She glanced at her watch and realized that it was already 11:00. She needed to get back to the club and change before meeting Sam and Dean. She picked her way across the rooftops, running down into the basement. To her relief, Felicity was the only one down there. Felicity gave her a small smile and she hurried past into the back. It took her ten minutes to change. She folded her costume into a sports bag and carefully placed the staff and wig on top. She put her sister’s jacket back on, praying that it lent her strength tonight.   


"Hey, Felicity, do you have any concealer?" Laurel asked, walking back into the main part of the base.   


"Over by the med kit," Felicity responded without looking up from her computer. "Did they get you good?"   


"Stupid mugger. At least it was only his fist and not his gun," Laurel chuckled as she walked over to drawer with the med kit and started to rummage through.   


"Why didn't you call somebody in for backup?" Felicity asked.   


"Nobody would've gotten there in time," Laurel replied, covering the purpling mark on her cheek. "I was the only one who could help."   


"At least you're alright," Felicity sighed.    


Laurel smiled slightly to herself as she finished. Felicity wasn't that thrilled with her going out as the Canary either, but she did accept that it was Laurel's decision and not anybody else's.   


She glanced at her watch and cursed to herself when she realized she was five minutes late. She hurriedly stashed her things and ran out the door with barely a "bye!" to Felicity. She walked out into the alley behind the club to find Sam, Dean, and Sin all waiting for you.   


"I'm sorry, I got caught up talking to Thea," she panted.   


"Thought you chickened out like a sensible person," Dean grunted.   


"Dean, be quiet," Sam sighed, walking over to her. "But we were getting worried."   


"I'm fine," she responded, smiling up at him.    


"Well if the lovebirds are done making goo goo eyes at each other, we should get going," Sin said dryly, jumping off of the step she was sitting on.   


Laurel went to take a step away from Sam, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her back, interlacing their fingers. Dean's eyes locked on their intertwined hands, but he didn't comment. Instead, he turned around and followed Sin to where he had parked his car. He slid into the driver’s seat and Sam slid into the passenger, too big to fit in the back. Laurel and Sin were stuck together in uncomfortable silence.   


"Did you know her well? Sara?" Laurel asked, breaking the silence.   


Sin chuckled to herself. "We were a little bit more than friends, I guess you could say. When she came to Starling, she was lost. She didn't feel like she could speak to any of her family. So when she helped me through a tight spot, I guess I sort of became the little sister she couldn't talk to."   


"I wish that she would've told me sooner," Laurel said quietly.   


"She lived in a dangerous world. She didn't want you getting hurt. Just look at what happened when she tried to resist the League. It wasn't pretty."   


"Who's the League?" Dean chimed in from the front seat.   


"No one you have to worry about," Laurel bit back.    


"Okay, we're in an enclosed car. Let's take it down a notch," Sam said soothingly, reaching back to grab her hand. She let him and he began to rub soothing circles. She took a deep breath to cool her temper.   


"Sorry, Dean. My sister was unwillingly involved with some very dangerous people. She was scared to get me and the rest of my family involved so she decided to hide her return to Starling City from us."   


"I see her point," he replied.   


"Yeah, I do too," she sighed. "At least I do now. When I first found out, I was furious. But she was just looking after me and my dad. Something I'm trying to do now."   


She mumbled the last part under her breath. Sam and Dean didn't hear, but Sin looked over sadly. She supposed that Roy or somebody must've told her about the decision to not tell her father about Sara's death.   


The silence resumed until Sin began to give directions, directing Dean towards the lair. Laurel was surprised when they stopped in front of a small blood bank in the Glades, but she supposed that it made sense. The vampires needed blood to live and if Sara had decided that they needn't be bothered with, they must not have been killing people, hence the alternative food source.   


"Come on," Sin sighed, getting out of the car and leading them towards the door, the brothers and Laurel trailing behind her.   


The door was unlocked so they walked right on inside. There was woman sitting at the counter, reading a magazine in the low light. She looked up and started to smile when she saw Sid, but her smile quickly faded when she saw the company. She sighed.   


"Note to self, if I ever give somebody the keys to my house, make sure that their sister isn't friends with the Winchesters."   


Sin laughed. "Nice to see you too, Ally."   


The woman, Ally, cracked a smile and stood up, coming around the counter. "I knew you'd be coming back. You just couldn't stay away."   


Sin shrugged. "People are getting hurt, Ally-cat. Somebody's got to stop them."   


"And you go for the toughest guys in the business," Ally chuckled, extending her hand towards Sam. "I'm Allyson, but Sin here, with her fondness for short names, likes to call me Ally, sometimes Ally-cat."   


"It's nice to meet you, Ally," Sam said with a warm smile, shaking her hand. Ally offered her hand to Dean, but he just glared so she let her hand drop and turned to Laurel.   


"And this is Sara's lovely sister!" she exclaimed, giving her a hug.   


"Um, hi," Laurel said, uncertain about what to do.   


"Hey, I'm really sorry about your sister," Ally said with a grimace. "It shouldn't have happened. Sara was a wonderful person."   


"She was," Laurel agreed. She didn't mind as much now when people apologized for Sara's death. In the beginning, she had wanted for everybody to shut up since they didn't really know, but she had come to appreciate how many lives Sara had touched. "It's nice to meet you."   


"I suppose I should take you down to see the big guy," Ally grimaced. "Nothing I say is going to make you stay up here?"   


"Only if you tell us what's happening," Sin countered.   


"I'm on pain of death to not. I'd rather keep my head than see it rolling," Ally said, motioning for them to follow. She led them to an elevator and pressed the button. It came open with a ding and they all filed in except for Ally. She waved as the door started to close. When it shut, Dean turned to glare at Sin.   


"What the hell was that about?"   


"Ally's one of the good ones!" Sin protested. "She was turned in the ‘80s, but I mean, she still looks 25. She joined this group back in the ‘90s and hasn't touched a human since. She tends to work the front when it's business hours and has been mine and Sara's go to person with anything involving the coven. She's also been the most open about the whole situation. She's the only one to admit that something's been going on and she also told us just now that they're being threatened to not say anything. I can't ask her to risk her life so I just try to pick up on any hints she drops and work towards solving the rest."   


"There are people who are getting hurt and she has answers," Dean grumbled.   


Sin glared at him. "Maybe you guys do things differently, but this coven is special and I'm not going to stand by as you torture and question the  members, especially now that it would reflect badly on me and Sara's memory since I brought you here."   


"We'll do things your way," Sam said, agreeing for Dean.   
  


* * *

  
Sam wasn't surprised when Laurel's hand found his own on their way down the elevator. She was putting up a good front, but he could see that she was terrified on the inside. During his time in Starling, he had wondered how he had come to be able to read her so well, but he couldn't come up with any explanation. They just worked together. He smiled as he remembered their kiss from the night before. They hadn't talked about it except for the few words said afterwards, but he could tell that their dynamic had changed. When before he had been defending Laurel's choice to come with them, he was now worried for her protection. Laurel, for her part, just seemed happy. Not that he wasn't happy with her as well, but until that night, he wasn't sure if he'd ever seen her smile without pain. He was thrilled that he was the one who had lifted the cloud of grey from her that he was sure had been lingering since her sister's death.   


He struggled not to think about the future. He was so happy here with Laurel, but Dean and the hunt would always need him. While he was sure that it would be absolutely worth it to stay, he was needed elsewhere. For some reason his thoughts wandered to the vigilantes who protected Starling and wondered if they had the same thoughts. Surely they had homes and families, but they continued out of duty to protect those who couldn't, not such a different creed than his own. He knew in his heart that at the end of this hunt, he would leave. He could only hope that somewhere in her heart, Laurel  would be able to forgive him.    


He shook himself out of his thoughts as the elevator finished its descent. He had Laurel for now and he would take advantage of every second.   


"Are you ready?" he asked her quietly.   


She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand. "As ready as I'll ever be."   


"This way," Sin motioned and took the lead.    


The building was surprisingly modern with white painted walls and electric lights running along the ceiling. The main corridor branched off into several others where there were people (ahem, vampires) walking around, talking and laughing. A few waved or nodded at the group as they passed, but most ignored them. Sin led them straight down the main corridor until they reached sliding, fogged glass doors with what looked like a security desk in front of it except for the man sitting their was lounging back in the chair with his feet on the desk and a bag of blood in his hands.   


Sin sighed. "You got a snack specifically because you knew we were coming down here, didn't you, Grant?"    


"Don't know what you're talkin 'bout," the security guard, Grant, answered with a smirk, his deep Texan accent affecting his words. "But if y'all are freaked by a little bag of blood, y'all may not be in the best place."   


"Just shut up and get us to Harrison," Sin replied, rolling her eyes.   


"Yes, ma'am," he grinned and gave a sarcastic salute, getting up from the desk. "Wouldn't want repeat of last time, yeah?"   


With a wink, Grant let himself through the glass door and turned a corner so he was no longer visible.    


"What happened last time?" Dean asked.

Sin rolled her eyes. "When I first came to see Harrison, the guy didn't think that I was serious since Sara wasn't here with me. He kept me waiting for close to two hours with just that asshole, Grant, as company before he saw that I wasn't leaving. When I finally got in, I very forcefully reminded them of our terms of friendship, especially the part where we would be allowed an audience if we asked. Looking back on it, that might have been part of the reason why Harrison was so unhelpful when it came to the rogue vamp. But I was pissed that I had wasted two hours when there was serious business to get down to just because they don't take me as seriously as Sara."   


"How about this time, somebody else handles the talking so we don't get on their bad side immediately?" Sam suggested amiably.   


"Fine by me," Sin shrugged.    


The group waited in silence until Grant returned a few minutes later.   


"Y'all are welcome to enter," he said with a mock bow, holding the door open. Sin gave him a curt nod before entering, the rest falling into step behind her.   


Laurel wasn't sure what to expect from Harrison, but the abrupt change in decor stopped her in her tracks. From cold steel and fluorescent lights, the walls turned to a mix of warm reds, browns, and greens. The floor melted into a varnished hardwood and the rows of lights became lanterns and chandeliers. Along the walls were bookshelves with aged books, bound in leather and several that appeared to not be in English or even any modern language. Two hulking men that she could only assume to be bodyguards stood at either side of a mahogany desk at the far end of the room. Behind the desk sat a man who must have been Harrison.   


Just as the office had defied her expectations, the man behind the desk was no different. For some reason, the leader of the largest vampire coven in Starling did not compute to be a fifty year old business man in her mind. His black suit seemed the most natural look possible and the fatherly expression on his face was similar to that of her own father, if not for the cool and calculating eyes that ruined the illusion.   


"Really now, Cindy, we may be needing to rediscuss the terms of our agreement to exclude bringing hunters into our home," he said, standing and  making his way around the desk.   


"It's nice to meet you," Sam said, stepping forwards so the attention was on him and not Sin's rolling eyes.    


"Sam Winchester, yes?" Harrison asked, shaking his hand. "And his brother, Dean, of course."   


"That's me," Dean confirmed, his arms crossed and his face stern.   


"And who's this lovely lady you brought with you?"   


"Laurel Lance," she introduced herself. "Sara was my sister."   


"I am sorry for your loss," the vampire said. If she hadn't gotten so good at reading people in the last year, he might have fooled her into thinking that he actually cared, but she could see the coldness in his eyes.   


"Thank you," she said, pretending not to have noticed.    


"So what can we do for you this evening?" Harrison asked, returning behind his desk.   


"We were wondering if you had any information on a recent string of murders happening across Starling," Laurel began. "As a part district attorney’s office, and with a father as the chief of police, I am required to look into these things."   


"What humans do to each other is no concern of ours," Harrison said airily, not looking concerned.    


"And I'd be inclined to agree if that were the case," she responded graciously. "However, from the small bist of data that we were able to gather from the bodies before they mysteriously vanished, they appear to have been drained of blood. I know from my discussions with Sara the terms of your agreement so it could not have been anybody from you coven, correct?"   


Harrison nodded in agreement. She was glad to see that her mentioning Sara's name gave her credibility in his eyes that wasn't there before, even if it wasn’t quite true. She continued.   


"So I ask, in the interest of both of our parties, for any current information to be given before more hunters, such as the Winchesters here, are attracted to Star City who may not be as understanding as present company, creating a threat for your coven and attracting the attention of the vigilantes who, I believe, neither of us want involved."   


"Your position against the vigilantes is surprising given you and your sister's connection to them," Harrison observed, raising an eyebrow and ignoring the rest of the argument.   


She had to force herself to not purse her lips at his subtle suggestion that he knew of her role as the Black Canary. There was one advantage gone. "I'm merely avoiding the paranoia of the leader if any of this is revealed. I don't fancy an arrow in the head if I come up quietly behind him."   


"An understandable concern," Harrison agreed with a slight smile tugging on his lips. "Unfortunately, the matter you wish to discuss has no information I can give you."   


"No information to give us perhaps, but you do have information," Laurel said with a note of coldness in her voice, noting his exact wording.  
Harrison threw his head back and laughed. "You are a keen one, aren't you? Perhaps you are right, perhaps not. If you truly believe that there is a rogue vampire on the streets, why not take care of it? Why come to me at all?"  


"Not the way hunting works," Dean cut in. "I don't like risking my neck for nothing. We find out all of the information first before going after the monster. Rushing in will get you killed."   


"Patience is not a quality often associated with the Winchesters," Harrison observed with a raised eyebrow.    


"But survival is," Dean replied easily. "Now listen, there's a vamp out there killing innocents. Even if we fail to catch him, I guarantee you that there are more hunters at our back who will gladly come and not be as understanding toward your coven as us. Now give us the damn info or-!"   


"What Dean is trying to say," Laurel interjected, stomping on his foot, "is that we are your best option for keeping your coven safe. If you still refuse, we cannot force you. Thank you for your time."   


She turned and started walking out of the room, Sin right behind her. Sam grabbed Dean's arm and dragged him out. As soon as they entered the elevator, Dean rounded on her.   


"What the hell was that about? We shouldn't have left! He would've...!"   


"No, he wouldn't have given us anything, Dean." she said, exhaustion plain in her voice. "It was clear from the moment we walked into the room that he had no intention of helping us. He was just humoring the agreement. In the courtroom, there are the people too stubborn to confess and the people with enough power that they don't feel the need to confess. Harrison was one of the later. He believes that there is nothing we can do to touch him. Maybe he's right, but going after him isn't going to help matters. We'll find another route to take."   


The elevator opened with a ding and the four of the clambered out past Ally at the desk, who gave them a sad, resigned look, and out the door into the darkness. They were walking towards the Impala when they heard footsteps behind them.   


"Wait!" Ally called, sprinting up. "I can't deal with this anymore."   


"What are you saying, vamp?" Dean asked bitingly   


"The rogue vamp," Ally said, panting after her sprint. "It's not just a random person from the coven. Harrison kept an eye over his remaining human family after he was turned. There was one girl, his great granddaughter or something. She was born with some sort of mental illness. She was okay when she was younger, but started deteriorating until about twelve when she was on her deathbed. Harrison couldn't stand to let her die so young so he turned her. But she's out of control. She never reacts in a way that we can predict and Harrison refuses to let anybody attempt to restrain her, only to run behind her to clean up her messes. I'm tired of living in fear of his retribution. He loves the girl, but she's a danger to us all."

“Do you know where she is?” Dean asked.

“No, nobody does. Once she was turned, she went out of control. She murdered her family, both her parents and her baby brother. I don’t want to be in league with people who would let somebody like that roam freely.”   


"Come on, Ally, we need to get you out of here," Sin said fearfully, urging the vampire toward the Impala.   


"Sorry, chicky, but I'm afraid I can't let y'all do that," a southern voice drawled behind them.    


She jerked around. There was Grant, holding a large knife and smirking. A line of four other vampires were lined up behind him. Although none of them were armed, she knew better than to think that they weren't dangerous. Her blood ran cold. On a good day, they might have been able to defeat the group, although not without injuries. But right then, they were outnumbered and none of them had weapons on them. The Impala was another twenty feet away where she knew that the Winchesters had weapons in their trunk, but they didn't have time to get them.   


Sam and Dean took out their guns from their waistbands and leveled them at the group while Ally glared in defiance.   


"This has gone on long enough. I'm not sure about you guys, but I don't fancy more hunters walking into Starling with the goal to take me out. We got lucky this once, but that doesn't guarantee a second shot," Ally bit at them. "I'm taking my out now. If you let me go now, you can tell Harrison that you've killed me and you'll never see my face again."   


"No can do, I'm afraid," Grant said, his bottom lip sticking out in a fake pout. "The Boss specifically said to bring him your head, this is the end of the line for you."   


Ally snarled at him. Laurel felt long hair tickle her shoulder as Sam leaned over.   


"As soon as we fire, run to the Impala and grab as many knives as you can," he murmured as quietly as possible.   


Harrison laughed at Ally. "Aw, cute. Too bad that's the last time I'll ever hear the pretty little growl."   


With that, he ran full charge at Ally with the other vampires behind him. Sam and Dean fired their guns and each bullet hit two of the perusing vampires in the foreheads. She turned around and sprinted to the car. It took her all of ten seconds to get there, jostle open the trunk and fake floor, and pull out four sturdy, sharp knives. Footsteps were running up behind her she turned and nearly took off Sin's head.   


"Watch it!" Sin exclaimed, dodging out of the way.   


"For you and Dean," Laurel said, not wasting time on an apology. She quickly gave Sin two of the knives and sprinted towards Sam and the battle going on. Sam and Dean were each going fist to fist with a vampire while in the middle, Grant and Ally were battling with the other two vampires were circling and trying to get in a shot.   


_I guess there's more the nickname Ally-cat then just a catchy rhythm_ she thought to herself as she took a split second to observe Ally weaving in and out of the three vampires. She didn't need to land a hit, she just dodged everything they threw at her.  
She forced herself to focus on what she was doing. She hefted one of the knives in her right hand, loving how similar it felt to her normal batons, and swung it at the vampire that Sam was fighting. With a sickening squelch, the head came off surprisingly easy and rolled towards her feet as the body collapsed with a thud. Sam looked at her in shock.  


"Not bad for your first kill," he complimented.   


"Thanks," she grinned and threw him a knife.   


He observed the one she still had in her hand. "You should get to safety. You don't fight for a living."   


She glared at him. "I'm not going to run away."   


"Just don't get hurt," he pleaded before running to take on one of the vampires in the middle. Dean was still working on his vampire and she could see that Sin had been thrown into a wall and was groaning as she attempted to stand on what seemed to be a broken leg. She sprinted over to help.    


"Come on, I've got you," she said quietly as she lifted Sin up so that the small girl was standing on her good leg and had an arm over her shoulder. 

"Let's get you to the car and you can stay there.   


"Okay," Sin groaned, hobbling as best she could with Laurel supporting her.    


As they walked the thirty feet or so towards the car, she took the opportunity to observe the ongoing battle. Sam and Dean were tiring, that much was obvious. What had once been strong, quick slashes with their knives had turned clumsy. Dean had managed to kill the one that had thrown Sin into the wall and was now on the last unnamed vampire that had been on Ally.    


"You stay here and keep a tight hold on that," Laurel said, gesturing towards the knife that Sin still held tight in her hand while she helped Sin get into the car.   


"You don't hold back, okay? You can't afford to right now," Sin said quietly as she adjusted her leg. "You make Sara proud."   


"I will," Laurel promised as tears pricked her eyes before she could wipe them away.   


"Go get them, Canary," Sin grinned.   


Laurel smiled back and turned to go back. She paused briefly as she wasn't sure where to head. Sam and Dean were fighting their vampires and Ally was still against Grant. She wasn't sure how Ally hadn't managed to get hit, but thanked God that she was all right.    


She decided to go help Sam and it was a lucky choice as the vampire managed to get under Sam's guard to throw him back twenty feet. Unfortunately, she couldn't stop her exclamation of worry which threw away any chance of surprise she may have had. The vampire turned towards her at startling speed and grinned, showing off his sharp teeth. She readjusted her grip on the knife in her hand and smirked at him. He was going to underestimate her and she could use that to her advantage. Roy had taught her a lot, especially how to use her advantages. She wasn't strong, but she was quick and agile and, most important of all, a woman. While in many cases she hated being looked down on for her gender, she'd take the advantage when fighting a guy bigger and stronger than her.    


"Bring it," she challenged. The vampire smirk and charged her. She dodged his first strike and use her momentum to spin and kick one of his knees. He stumbled, but she didn't stop there. Planting the foot down that she had just kicked with, she avoided his clumsy punch and slashed at his arm, making a deep, long cut. He growled at her and began to attack more ferociously. She grinned internally and pretended to start falling back due to his onslaught. Purposefully taking the bait on one of his feints, she allowed herself to be knocked back and pretended to be slightly stunned. She knew the vampire was going to take advantage and come charging at her without any guard up.    


"Laurel!" Sam yelled.   


She glanced over, realizing too late that she had just screwed up her entire maneuver. She barely had enough time to avoid the vampire as he threw a punch towards her. Something huge threw itself in front of her and she was pushed down as Sam took the punched meant for her to the side of his ribs. He fell to the ground and the vampire crouched over him, fangs exposed and ready to take a chunk out of Sam's neck.   


"Sam, no!" Dean yelled. Pushing with every last ounce of his strength, he managed to get the vampire to back away far enough so he could reach out with his knife to cut his head off. But he would be too late to help Sam   


Laurel jumped to her feet, ignoring the throbbing on her hip where she had landed and sprinted towards Sam. She kicked the vampire off and he rolled onto the ground as she stood over him.   


"Not him, bitch," she spat and brought her knife down, taking his head clean off. She look down at Sam. "You alright?"   


"Maybe," he groaned, clutching his ribs.    


"I've got you, Sammy," Dean said, helping Sam stand up.   


"Sweet," Grant said with a sickly grin. He was holding Ally up by her neck. She was helplessly clawing at his hand to let her go, but it was no use as his hands tightened further. He held up his knife to Ally's neck and very slowly began pressing it in so a trickle of blood ran down her neck. Ally opened her mouth in a silent scream as she had no air to make a sound. "I shoulda known, with the Winchester Brothers, that this wouldn't be an easy fight. But it seems I have the upper hand now. Y'all are going to drop those knives down now or she gets it."   


Reluctantly, they all lowered their weapons. "Now this is how it's gonna work. Y'all leave Starling, none the wiser, and don't come back. Or I'm gonna have to hunt down and kill all of yah which I don't fancy doin'. Nobody else needs to get hurt. You let us do our business, and we let you do yours."   


"And Ally?" Laurel asked, worry in her voice. There was a catch. There was no way that they were getting off that easily, not that they would take the deal. People would still be getting hurt.   


"Well she's our business so it don't concern you," Grant said, shaking the girl in his hand. Ally hissed in pain, still struggling. "But as y'all are so curious..."   


With a quick flash of his knife, Ally's body crumpled to the ground. He held up her head like some sort of sick trophy as the rest of them cried out. "Now yah see what happens when-"   


There was a second swish of a knife and Grant dropped to the ground, his head rolling away. They all looked up in surprise to see a very faint Sin swaying back and forth.   


"You bitch. You don't hurt my friends," she muttered before her good leg gave out and she fainted. Dean leapt forward and caught her so her head wouldn't catch the concrete.    


They all stood there in silence for a moment. She had silent tears running down her face as she knelt by Ally's body. "What do we do?"   


"We need to clean up before the cops arrive or a vamp is curious about what's taking Grant so long and bring's back up," Sam explained in a hollow voice.   


"I'll get Sin taken care of," she offered. "I know a friend of hers that can pick her up and won't ask questions."   


"You do that," Dean said gruffly, walking over and gently setting the girl in his arms down so that she was leaning against the Impala. She turned from him and pulled out her cell phone. She had the number on speed dial.   


"Hey, Roy."   


"Laurel, what's up?" he asked in surprise.   


"There was some trouble in the Glades and Sin got hurt. I think her leg's broken. Can you help?"    


"Of course," he said immediately. "Where are you guys?"   


She rattled off an address about a block from where they were. "She's not in the best condition. She's fainted and has some bad scratches, too."   


"Who were you fighting, Laurel?" he asked. It wasn't disappointment in his voice, more like exasperation.    


"I can't talk about it," she replied, hoping that her sincerity would reach him so he'd know that she wasn't purposefully trying to keep secrets from him. 

"I may be able to explain later, but not now."   


"Fine. I'll be there in ten minutes."   


The line cut off and she prayed that he wasn't mad at her. He'd been one of her biggest supporters and she might have just alienated him. She turned back to the brothers who were finishing with the bodies. "My friend is on his way. I told him to go a block down from here. He'd recognize the signs of a fight. Can somebody help me with her?"   


"I've got her," Sam said quietly, moving over and gently picking Sin up. Dean just glared at her and turned away. What had she done now?   


"Why is Dean mad at me?" she asked quietly and they began to walk down the street.   


"He's not mad," Sam tried to deny.   


"Don't lie to me, Sam Winchester," she demanded.   


"He's just worried, that's all," he relented. "You did almost get killed. You shouldn't have been fighting. You're not trained like we are."   


"Yes, you're definitely trained to jump in front of a punch," she said sarcastically.    


He winced. "Not one of my finer moments," he admitted, shifting Sin slightly to alleviate pressure from his bruised limbs. "But better me than you."   


"I don't think that Dean would agree with that," she said, realizing why Dean was mad. "He's worried that you're going to get yourself killed protecting me."   


"I guess," Sam muttered. "Is this where he's going to meet you?"   


"Yeah. Just put Sin down and head back to the car. I'll be right behind you."   


He nodded, sitting Sin against the wall of a building before jogging back down the street. She knelt down and adjusted Sin's leg to the straightest position possible. She looked up as she heard an engine. A black van turned the corner and stopped in front of her. Roy jumped out in his full Arsenal gear. He opened the back of the van.   


"Come on. Let's get her in," he said in an authoritative tone. She wasn't going to argue. She helped him get the girl onto a small pad that they had and secured her. "I'm going to take her back to base. Diggle will fix her up and set the leg. Nobody but me knows that you're involved."   


"Thank you, Roy," she said quietly. "I owe you."   


He gave her a measured look. "Just don't do anything stupid. Call for backup when you need it. I won't ask questions. Are you going on patrol later?"   


"Maybe, not sure at the moment."   


"We can talk more then," he said, giving her a small smile. He ran to the driver’s door and leaped in. The van pulled out and took off back towards the Verdant. She sighed in relief. She would need to think of a good explanation later, but Roy wouldn't push until she was ready. She turned and took off down the street. The brothers were waiting for her outside of the car.   


"Let's go," Dean grunted, sliding into the driver's seat. Sam grimaced at her before sliding into his seat as well. She groaned to herself. This would not be a fun car ride back.

* * *

 

"My dad needs me in," she said to the quiet room.

There had barely been a word spoken since they had gotten back to her apartment. Dean had immediately gone to take a shower leaving her and Sam alone. She had taken the med kit out and neither one spoke a word as she slowly cleaned up his cuts and helped patch his bruise before he did the same to her. Dean had come out and immediately went to the kitchen, pulling out a beer. Sam left with a look at both of them, pleading for them to not kill each other before he too went to take a shower. When he returned, neither one had moved spots. Dean was staring off into space while she was at her laptop, waiting for a police report of the night, if any were to come in. She was also pulling together a file of all of the attacks that had happened as an idea started to form of how to track the vampire girl. She was desperate to escape the tense atmosphere of the room and go to the base, so she said the first excuse her mind thought of.

"Work? At two in the morning?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow over his own beer.

She shrugged. "It's part of the job, I guess. Well, at least when it's your dad calling and he knows he can get away with it. I'll be back in a few hours."

She had changed into jeans and a tank top and pulled Sara's coat on top of it. She grabbed her purse and her duffel bag with the rest of her costume before heading out of the door.

When she reached the base, it was with great relief to only find Felicity at her desk with Sin sleeping quietly on one of the cots to the side, her leg in a cast.

"Can I ask you a favor, Felicity?"

"Another one?" Felicity asked, her eyebrows raised in surprise. "Um, yeah, sure. I guess."

"Can you triangulate a location where these attacks may be originating from?"

Felicity's hand froze on the way to grab the flash drive that Laurel was holding out.

"Laurel, you're not helping things on the 'not tell Oliver' promise."

"I'll talk to Roy, I promise," she begged. "I just really need this location. Everything could end in the next twenty four hours with your help."

"Talk to Roy," Felicity said in a firm voice while taking the flash drive and plugging it in. "Let's see what we have here..."

Laurel smiled slightly as she went to the back to change. 

"Got it!" Felicity yelled two minutes later. Laurel hurried over and read off the address, quickly entering it in her phone.

"You are the best, Felicity," she nearly squealed, hugging the girl. "Thank you so much!"

"Just don't get into too much trouble," Felicity said, laughing at Laurel's enthusiasm.

"I'll try not to," she grinned, heading out of the base. She got out her phone and sent a quick text to Sam.

_ I managed to figure out an address where the vamp may be hiding. I'm sending it to you now. _

_ How'd you get this? _ he asked.

_ Software on my dad's computer. It calculated the likelihood of locations based on where the attacks took place. _

_ Thanks. We'll be waiting for you. _

She sighed and put her phone away. She jumped on her bike and headed into the city.   
  
\-----   
  


She crouched on a rooftop, overlooking her apartment building so that she could see straight in the window. She had learned by now that if she wanted any privacy from the Arrow team she had to close the blinds, but Sam and Dean had no clue. Maybe it was the fact that they were in an apartment in a tall building, but she suspected that they were normally a lot more careful. She almost laughed out loud at the picture of them sitting on her couch, cleaning guns over the coffee table. 

It didn't feel right spying on them, but she couldn't trust that they wouldn't try something incredibly stupid without her knowing. She couldn't tell them why she would have a better fighting knowledge than the general middle class female worker. So she was instead reduced to watching them through a window in case they left and then she may be able to watch over them.

"Do I even want to know why there are two men cleaning guns in your apartment?"

She spun around, her baton lifting automatically. She had no idea how Roy had managed to sneak up on her, but she found it inexcusable and cursed herself privately.

"What are you doing up here, Roy?" she asked grimly. 

He shrugged. "You're acting weird. Sin is acting weird. You have two strange men in your apartment who seem to be quite at home there. Can you blame me for being curious?"

"You need to stay out of this, Roy. This isn't something that you know how to handle," she said quietly. She felt bad for not telling him after how much help he had been giving her, but there was no going back after you learned the truth.

"Then tell me," he coxed, pushing his hood down and sitting on the edge of the roof, pulling her arm so she did as well.

"You would never believe me even if I did tell you. Besides, there are some things that you're better off not knowing," she sighed. "I would give anything to be able to go back."

"Well how about their names then?" Roy asked with a nod towards her apartment.

"Sam and Dean Winchester," she answered automatically. "Dean is the one with short sandy hair and looks mad all the time and Sam is the taller one with long brown hair."

"And you know them well?" 

"Sam better than Dean, but yes."

There was a moment of comfortable silence before she spoke again. "How's Sin doing? I saw her in a cast at the base."

"Alright. She came to as Diggle was patching her up. She was a bit loopy from the painkillers, but wouldn't say how she got hurt. She did ask if you were okay before she started to make snarky comments about how the Cave was nothing like how she expected."

"That's good," Laurel said with a small smile. 

"I'm not Oliver, Laurel. I'm not going to pry into your business. But if you need help, let me know," Roy said, standing up and pulling his hood back on. He smiled behind his mask. "Take care of yourself. There are dangerous things on the streets."

"More dangerous things beneath your bed," she muttered, standing up. She watched with a smile as Roy shot an arrow like a grappling line to the adjacent building. When she turned back, she nearly jumped out of her skin. Dean was staring straight at her. He motioned to Sam behind him who came over to the window to look out. Sam turned away and pulled out his cell phone.

"Hey Laurel?" Felicity called in her ear piece.

The voice was enough to shock her out of her frozen state. She turned and ran to the opposite side of the building and vaulting over the side to the fire escape. She pressed the button on her ear pierce. Felicity insisted on her wearing it, just in case, although she promised that she wouldn't let Oliver use it to track her. Once in awhile, Felicity would tell her of a simple mugging or such if it was a busy night, but most of the time it remained silent. But Laurel had to admit that she felt slightly better knowing that the tech girl was looking out for her.

"What's up, Felicity?" 

"Your phone is ringing incessantly from some guy called Sam Winchester," Felicity replied. "Do you want me to patch it through?"

"Go ahead. Thanks," Laurel said as the audio cut out and waited for Felicity to hook her phone up to the computer (or more likely just hack it. The things that girl could do with wifi...)

"Hello?" she asked as she heard the line connect.

"Hey, it's Sam," Sam answered. "Dean and I were wondering if you happened to know any of the vigilantes."

"I've had a bit of a working relation with them. They do catch half of the people I try, if not more," she responded carefully.

"Is it some sort of signal that there was some blond woman in black leather looking in your window?"

"The blonde woman? I think that was the Black Canary. She's come and gone the past couple years, but she's been around a lot more lately," she explained. It felt weird to speak of herself in the third person, especially while she was still in her Canary disguise.

"So there's more than just the Arrow?"

"Oh yeah. There's a guy in a red hood that's kind of like the Arrow's sidekick. I think he's called Arsenal officially. There's another guy, too. African American. He's the only one who uses a gun. The people downtown think that he's military trained. My father knows their tech girl. She's the one that the precinct normally has to contact."

"It sounds like quite an operation," Sam commented.

"They've done a lot of good for the city," she said with a small smile. She would always be amazed of this thing that she was a part of.

"When will you be getting back?" Sam asked, changing the subject.

"In an hour or so, but I can be back in twenty if you need me," she responded.

"No, no! You're fine!" Sam responded hurriedly. "Seriously, take your time. Just let me know when your coming."

Was it just her imagination or did that sound  _ slightly _ too reassuring. 

"Okay. I'll be back around 4:00. I've really been neglecting stuff here," she agreed. She scrambled up the fire escape again and ran at a crouch so she could see her apartment window, but one of the brothers had apparently closed the curtain. She smiled to herself. No matter. Oliver had pretty much made a permanent zip line between this building and hers so he could always get in her window via the fire escape. She used it to her own advantage now, using her baton as a handle and zooming down it. She congratulated herself on a lot more graceful landing than she normally had and quickly jumped down the fire escape. She stood against the wall with her ear turned toward the window in an effort to hear.

"I don't like this, Dean," Sam's muffled voice came. "I don't like lying to her."

"Would you rather your girlfriend be dead?" Dean bit back. "She's going to get herself killed if she continues like this. You were nearly killed because you were protecting her. She's a danger to herself and to us."

Laurel had to hold tears back as she continued listening to their conversation. She wasn't sure why Dean's words hurt her so much. Maybe because they were so similar to another’s.

"She's just trying to help," Sam argued. "And she did take on two of the vamps. Just one caught her off guard."

"She shouldn't have been fighting in the first place! We told her to stay back and she didn't listen."

Laurel imagined two very different people having this argument. Dean was Oliver, extremely opposed to her going out and doing anything, being an overprotective jerk who was trying to take away her choice. Sam was Roy, who while he didn't particularly like it, would support her. 

"You're not in charge of her Dean!"

"Do you not care for her life at all? Haven't you lost enough girlfriends?!"

There was dead silence in the room. Laurel held her breath, waiting for the answer.

"Don't. You. Dare." Sam growled with a dangerous edge to his voice. "Don't you dare bring up  _ her _ . Laurel knows exactly what she's going up against.  _ She _ didn't ask to be a part of this.  _ She _ died because of me and  _ my _ ignorance and  _ my _ stupidity. Laurel will  _ never _ face that."

Silence again. She strained to hear anything that could be happening.  

"I'm sorry, Sam," Dean's gruff voice said quietly. "That was out of line. I should never have brought up Jessica. I know that it's not the same situation at all. But you can't deny that you won't be one hundred percent focused if she's with us and that means that I won't be one hundred percent focused because I'm gonna be worried about you."

"Fine, Dean. Whatever," Sam sighed. "Let's just get this over with."

She was left stunned as she heard footsteps and the door of her apartment open and close. Who was Jessica? Obviously an old girlfriend of Sam's that had apparently meant quite a lot to him before she died in some way related to the supernatural. She couldn't blame him for not telling her. Not only was he a private person, they just hadn't known each other long enough for a subject like exes to come up, with the obvious exception of Oliver, even if they were sort of dating. Well, dating enough to hold hands and kiss even if they'd never actually been on one unless you count hunting vampires.

She shook herself out of her thoughts as it suddenly occurred to her that Sam and Dean planned on hunting the vampire tonight. Without her. She smirked to herself. She knew this city better than anybody except for the other vigilantes. Even if they took a cab out to the glades, she had her bike and could easily beat them out there through back alleys. She paused for a moment before continuing. Sam and Dean could take care of themselves, but there was always the possibility. One thing that Roy and Felicity had drilled into her head was to always ask for back up, especially if you didn't quite know what you were going up against. If it was a normal vampire, she wouldn't have worried, but this one was out of it's mind. There was no calculated moves or strategy, this one relied on brute strength and it scared her that it had been able to get along with just that for so long.

She sighed and pressed the button on her com.

"Hey, Roy, It's Laurel. How soon can you get to the glades?" She paused. "And if you have any swords, bring those, too."   
  
\-----   
  


Sam sighed as they approached the location that Laurel had figured out. They owed her for figuring this out and they weren't even telling her the truth. He felt absolutely horrible for lying to her. Of course he cared about her safety, but he knew from personal experience how it felt to be left out of the loop from Dean's own overprotectiveness.

He sighed again and shook himself out of his thoughts. He had to focus on the hunt unless he wanted to lose his head. He glanced at Dean next to him who gave him a slow nod. The years of hunting at each other's side had created an automatic bond where they barely had to speak, a simple glance would do. 

The townhouse was small and tucked away behind overgrown bushes and a broken fence. Dean went first through the garden, his butcher knife ready in his hand. Sam followed quietly, keeping an eye on the street behind them to make sure that nobody was around. He and Dean stood on either side of the locked door.  _ Three... Two... One… _

A split second later, they were both through the door that Dean had kicked down and back to back, examining the entryway. The wallpaper was grey and dirty. Dust covered the surfaces of the furniture. They glanced in each room downstairs. Kitchen, living room, dining room. They met back up in front of a staircase to the second floor. Both of their heads shot up as there was a creak in the floorboards. Dean was up first, knife at the ready, Sam right behind him. The first door they opened was to the master bedroom. Dean closed it and Sam reached for the next one: a young boy's room. His heart sank as he remembered what Ally said about the girl having a baby brother. He closed the door quietly. A quiet voice reached them from the last door in the hall.

  
  
_"Ring-a-round the rosie,_ _  
_ _A pocket full of posies,_ _  
_ _Ashes! Ashes!_ _  
_ _We all fall down."_ _  
  
_

The singsong voice of a young girl made him want to shiver. The cruel origins of the rhyme did nothing to calm his twitchiness. He glanced at Dean who seemed to have the same reaction to the song. His brother motioned for him to follow and they made it to the last room from where the voice was coming from. Dean opened the door and they both quietly walked in. The room was a disaster. Toys were thrown everywhere. The wall paper was ripped and hanging down in some places. The ceiling fan was hanging at an odd angle from the ceiling and there were holes of varying degrees in the walls and ceiling, some big enough for a person to get through. And in the center of the chaos, a young girl in a white dress was sitting on the ground, facing away from the door. Her hair was a rat's nest and there was blood on her arms. She was rocking back and forth, the creepy song coming from her lips.

Before he knew what was happening, the girl turned towards him with a snarl, revealing her vampire teeth. She flashed over to his side quicker than he could react. Next thing he knew, he was flying out the second story window. He landed with a grunt on his back, instinctively rolling in an attempt to lessen the blow. Didn't matter. Still hurt like hell.

He groaned and felt for his knife that he had heard land near his side. His fingers brushed against the handle, but he froze as a voice spoke near him.

"Looks like you could use a hand."

He glanced up and blinked the fuzziness out of his eyes. At first he couldn't distinguish anything but a mass of red standing in front of him, but that gradually cleared so he could see a man wearing red leather pants and jacket with the hood pulled over the head. He could easily see under the hood from his vantage point, but a red mask covered the face anyways.

"Are you one of those vigilantes?" he groaned as he took the offered hand and was pulled to his feet.

The man nodded. "They call me Arsenal."

The voice was masked with some sort of modifier, making it slightly more difficult to tell his age, but he would say fairly young from the brief glance he got under the hood. Now that he was on his feet, he towered over the man, but that was normal for him. The man had a bow slung around his shoulder and a quiver of arrows on his back. He glanced down and saw a sword gripped loosely by Arsenal's side.

"Do you know what we're up against?" he asked. 

The man gave a sort of half laugh. "Found out ten minutes ago, but yeah, I know there's a vampire in there. The Canary is up there helping your brother."

"How did you know to help us?" 

"We have a mutual friend," the man said with a smirk.

Laurel. That was the only explanation. But how could she have known that they were heading to kill the vamp? His blood ran cold. She knew that he had lied. She knew that she was purposefully left out. And yet, she sent them help in the form of two vigilantes. Two well-trained vigilantes, from what she had told them. 

Both of their heads snapped up as a loud crash was heard.

"I think we should go help your friend," Sam suggested, tightening his grip on his knife.

"I think you may be right."   
  
\-----   
  


As soon as she saw Sam get thrown through the window, she jumped into the room from a hole in the ceiling. She had two short swords in her hands that she swung towards the vampire who had turned on Dean. The girl backed up to the other side of the room, crouched low and ready to fight, her delicate, childlike features ruined by the murderous expression on her face.

"Who the hell are you?" Dean demanded.

"Doesn't matter. I'm here to help," she said, having made sure her voice modifier was on.  "Watch your side!"

Dean twisted and swung his knife, but his aim was too high so it went right over the girl's head. The vampire pushed him, sending him flying into Laurel who turned and dropped the swords so she wouldn't get stabbed by them when they landed.

"Got her!" she heard Roy yell as he and Sam ran back into the room. Dean rolled off of her and pulled her to her feet, picking up and handing her swords back while the other pair fought.

"Thanks," she said shortly. "Arsenal, pair!" 

Roy nodded in acknowledgment of her plan as Sam was thrown away from the fight again. He ducked under the girl's pounce and used her momentum to throw her towards Laurel. Laurel slashed with her swords before jumping back to let Roy take over again. In the close quarters, there wasn't much room to trade off in attacks as both would've liked, but she had realized that the girl could barely concentrate long enough to attack whoever was currently attacking her so the best strategy would be to confuse her by switching people. 

She grunted in pain as she misstepped and the girl was able to claw her left arm. She fell back, but both Sam and Dean had jumped into the fray, noticing the strategy. It was like a sick game of tennis as the boys directed the vampire where they wanted with their knives and swords. She dropped the sword that she had been holding in her left hand and held her arm close to her chest. She readjusted her grip on the other sword and waited for an opportunity to attack. Getting in the way now would only cause mistakes. 

Then things started to go wrong. How could they not? The girl learned. It had clearly been intended for Dean to take the next shot at her, but she turned on the spot and pushed Roy instead. Not expecting it, he flew back and crashed into the wall. His head fell back, clearly dazed. Dean tried to cover up by taking a shot while her back was turned, but she ducked and pounced on Sam, another unexpected move. 

"No!" Laurel screamed while at the same time Dean yelled "Sammy!"

Both looked at each other briefly, determination in their eyes. Dean ran in first. He dropped his sword and pulled the vampire off of his brother and tossed her onto the ground. She stood up, spitting and snarling at him. He kicked her in the chest. Reeling from the blow, she stumbled back and right into the path of Laurel's sword which swung at just the right time and angle to take off her head.

"It's done," Laurel breathed. She shook her head at the poor girl. She didn't deserve what had happened to her and how she wouldn't even be able to experience heaven, only purgatory. She sighed and went over to Roy, helping him stand.

"Thank you both," Sam said graciously, getting up and brushing his pants off.

"Where the hell did you two come from?" Dean grunted, wiping the blood from his knife on a blanket. "Who told you about us?"

"I think Laurel did, Dean," Sam said quietly while she and Roy remained silent, wiping off their respective weapons. At this, Roy glanced at her and shrugged. She got the message: if she wanted to reveal who she was, it was her choice.

"Why would she..?"

"She knew that we were coming, Dean. She knew that she was being left out," Sam sighed.

"She's not too happy with you," Roy agreed with a cautious look at her.

Sam sat down and rubbed his face while Dean turned towards the two vigilantes. "So you guys do know about this stuff then?"

"Laurel told us before we came," she said, speaking quietly and using her voice disguiser.

Dean raised an eyebrow. "Laurel must know your team a lot better than she let on if you took her word for it that there were other things out there so quickly."

She felt frustration well up in her and she turned away. Dean would never quit questioning her, her capabilities, or her motives, just like Oliver. Roy jumped in instead to answer the hidden accusation.

"Laurel has been a reliable source during our working relation. She is trusted within our group. If she tells us about danger in the city, we will believe her."

"Still, that is a lot to take in on just her word before coming here and beheading people," Dean said, doubt clear in his voice.

Roy shrugged uncomfortably. "Look, I can't tell you any more. I came on the request of a friend to protect people she cared about. If you want to continue questioning her motives and why she kept our friendship from you, you have to ask her yourself."

"Believe me, I will," Dean grumbled.

"And you wonder why she didn't tell you when you don't trust her. Trust is a two way road, Dean," she said quietly, not turning around, but turning her voice disguiser off. There was silence.

"Laurel, my God..." Sam breathed.

She turned around slowly, removing her wig and mask. "Hello Sam, Dean."

"I'm so sorry," Sam murmured, looking completely torn up. He stood up and halfway held up his arms before drawing them back closer to him. 

She nodded slowly at him. He had broken his promise, but she was not in the mood for shouting and accusations. She turned towards Dean's shocked face.

"You're... You're a..."

"Vigilante, yes," she nodded, keeping her voice even and devoid of emotions. "My sister, Sara, was the first Black Canary, trained with the League of Assassins. After she died, I took on her name. I have been doing this for around five months now."

"My name is Roy, also know as Arsenal," Roy said, pulling his hood and mask off, comfortable now that Laurel had done the same. "I have trained under the Arrow for the past couple years with plenty of street fighting in my past and I've helped train Laurel. When Laurel asked me to come help, I wasn't really sure what to think at first when she told me about vampires, but I trust her to watch my back so I trusted her to tell me the truth. I'm glad that trust paid off. It’s nice to meet you both."

"You, too," Sam said quietly, reaching out to shake Roy's hand. "Thank you for your help, again."

"No problem. It's what we do," Roy said. He offered his hand to Dean who shook it halfheartedly, but didn't say anything. Roy put his mask on and pulled his hood up. "I'll let you guys talk things out. Laurel, I'll meet you at the Cave whenever you can come in, yeah?"

"I'll be there," she agreed. "Oh, Roy..."

She held out her swords and he took them with a smile. "I'll make sure to triple clean these before Oliver sees them."

She could see the look of horror in his eyes when he said Oliver's name, but a quick glance at the brothers showed that the name meant nothing to them, nor were they truly processing their conversation. 

"Thanks, Roy, for everything," she said with a smile. 

"Anytime," he grinned. With a sudden burst of speed, he ran and jumped out of broken window, onto a crumbling brick wall, and, without missing a step, was on the fire escape for the small apartment building next door and out of sight.

"You'll find that many of the vigilantes have difficulties leaving through the door," she said with a twist of cynical amusement around her mouth.   
  
\-----   
  


It was a tense and silent car ride back to her apartment. When they arrived back, she ran around the back of the building to climb up the fire escape so nobody would see her while Sam and Dean entered from the inside. Her first move was to change out of her Canary clothes and into something more comfortable to reflect the absolutely exhaustive state she was in. She settled for sweatpants and a tank top, and, after washing her lipstick off, she wandered back into the main room.

She silently observed the scene in front of her. Sam was pacing back and forth in front of her coffee table and Dean was lounging in an armchair, lost in thought. Both had changed out of their bloody clothes, but both had opted to return to jeans and their normal t-shirts and flannel shirts. Neither had noticed her quiet entrance from the hallway towards her bedroom.

"If you keep pacing like that, you'll wear a hole in my rug," she said quietly.

It was clear that she had startled them both as Sam jumped and turned while Dean sat up quickly.

"Laurel, are you okay?" Sam asked, concerned. Her bare arms and shoulders revealed a multitude of small cuts from being thrown against the walls and the beginnings of some deep bruisings.

"Nothing that won't heal, given a couple days," she answered. "I've had worse."

"Look, Laurel," he tried to begin, but she held her hand up.

"Sam, I understand what you were trying to do. You care for me and didn't want to see me get hurt or worse against something that you thought I couldn't fight. What is not okay with me, is that you took away my choice. It was my choice to get involved and lend a hand. And it should have been my choice as to whether or not I felt that I was able to handle myself around this vamp. I'm stubborn, but I'm not suicidal. Something that being a vigilante has taught me is how to know when I'm outmatched and when to pull back. I felt that if I had you two at my side, I could help to defeat the vamp, so that's why I was so insistent on being included. And this has nothing to do with my keeping the Black Canary a secret from you guys. Yes, you did not know the extent of my fighting skills because of that, however, I kept that part of my life a secret for more than one reason, the main one being the protection of my friends. Roy is one of the most open of us about his identity since he doesn't have anybody who he needs to protect on a personal level and nobody would really care about a juvenile delinquent from the Glades anyway. Our tech girl is the other fairly open one, but even she prefers that only that the people who need to know do. The Arrow himself is the one who guards his identity the closest. I didn't want to bring any of them into situations that they were uncomfortable in, nor do I want them knowing about this stuff. With Sin on the lookout and me, with Roy now, to take care of things if they get out of hand, there is no reason why the rest of the team needs to be informed."

"I don't think we'll be sticking around much longer anyway," Dean said.

"Leave this afternoon. Rest," she said shortly, walking back towards her bedroom. She hadn't slept in over twenty-four hours. She was used to functioning on small amounts of sleep because of the vigilante business, but she could barely keep her eyes open at the moment.

"Do you want us to leave now?" Sam asked in a small, hurt voice.

"No, stay. We can talk later. Goodnight, or good morning, I should say."   
  
\-----   
  


"Sin called me. She said that the coven won't be seeking revenge. Ally had a contingency plan in place. Several members weren't happy with the rules and once they heard about the fight, they confronted Harrison and he agreed to stand down," she said quietly.

The Winchesters and herself were sitting in a small dinner. The conversation was mostly small talk and follow up from the night before. None of them had the energy to fight. None had spoken much, but she had found that silence was comfortable with the brothers and clearly how they spent the majority of their time.

"That's good, we don't need anybody else after us," Sam said, swirling a french fry in ketchup.

"We've got enough problems of our own," Dean added. "We need to be getting back to this Rowena business."

"I'm surprised that Cas hasn't been in contact," Sam mused. 

"Who knows what he's been up to," Dean said, shaking his head. He drank the rest of his Coke and stood up. "We better get going. I'm going out to the car."

He left the dinner leaving Sam and Laurel alone.

"Look, Laurel..."

"Sam, I don't know where we're going or when we may see each other again," she interrupted. "You lied to me. I know you did it for my protection, but you took away my choice and my freedom. Maybe one day I'll be able to forgive you, but that can't be right now."

"I know that," he said quietly. "I like you a lot, Laurel. Not now, but someday, we can work through this."

"Someday," she agreed. She leaned forward and kissed him. "Goodbye, Sam."

She stood up and walked out. Trust had been broken, but trust could be reformed.  _ Someday. _

 

**Author's Note:**

> Hope it was worth the wait! It didn't exactly end how I was planning, but everything gets tied up in a neat little bow in the third part of this trilogy called Accepted which is already written and complete! I am looking for a beta to check it over before posting since Katsa is no longer available. If you're interested, let me know!
> 
> Till the next time:)  
> Pointeofdance


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